


Sacred

by RoryDysfunction



Series: Let Your Freak Flag Fly - Dys' Exo Adventures [2]
Category: The Predator (2018)
Genre: Alien Biology, Alien Culture, Alien Sex, Alien Technology, Aliens, Biting, Blood, Canon-Typical Violence, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Fluff, Foreplay, Injury, Kidnapping, Sex, Size Difference, Smut, Unsafe Sex, Yautja
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-19
Updated: 2020-10-20
Packaged: 2021-03-04 23:42:33
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 15,269
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25384747
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RoryDysfunction/pseuds/RoryDysfunction
Summary: Chloe wakes up on an alien spaceship far from Earth with a lone Yautja.
Relationships: Yautja (Predator)/Original Female Character(s), Yautja/Human
Series: Let Your Freak Flag Fly - Dys' Exo Adventures [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1817878
Comments: 28
Kudos: 224





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So this is entirely a self indulgent fic because I have way too much love for the big mean lizard boys.

Chloe’s head is throbbing when she wakes. She’s warm, sweat coating her skin. She’s sore, her muscles protesting every movement. She kicks the pelt off her body, rolling over on the hard surface. It takes a moment for her brain to catch up, quickly registering that she wasn’t in her room. Wasn’t in her bed. It was far too firm to be her old mattress, and she didn’t have any animal pelts either. Second, it was the middle of winter, so there was no way it could be that hot and humid in her room. 

Her body protests as she sits up, rubbing her eyes. The lights in the room are dim, giving her just enough light to see. The entire room seems to be made of metal, floor to ceiling. She’s laying in a sunken part of the floor, oval shaped with a ton of pelts layered under her. She crawls to the step, pulling herself up and onto the metal floor. It’s cool against her body, causing goosebumps to form on her bare legs. She’s been stripped down to her boyshort underwear and the tank top she wore under her clothes. She rubs her legs, feeling a bumpy scar on the back of her calf, running her fingers along the raised, jagged line. Her head is pounding as she looks around the somewhat empty room, seeming all too sterile and plain. 

Her vision spins as she forces herself up onto her feet, her limbs feeling heavy. She can’t remember much, especially how she got to this place. She remembers being in her house, doing her morning routine, but everything after that is blank. She stumbles as she tries to take a step, reaching out to catch herself against a wall. A panel slides up, making her step back in surprise. It was some sort of cover over a window. What Chloe sees out the window takes her breath away. 

Black, inky darkness dotted with billions of pinpricks of light. She presses her hand against the glass, staring out at space in disbelief. Everything comes rushing back to her in that moment, the eventful day slamming back into her brain like a sledgehammer. 

_ ****************** _

_ Chloe’s breath steams out in front of her as she treks through the trees, hunting for firewood. She hadn’t expected her central heating to crap out in the dead of winter, forcing her to fire up the old wood stove. To do that, she needed wood to feed the fire. It was the weekend and the repairman couldn’t even come out to her place until Monday at the earliest, so she was stuck either freezing or foraging for logs to tide her over until then.  _

_ The forest was quiet, even for winter. It unnerved her a bit, sending tickles of fear quavering down her spine. Something was off, even her dull human survival instincts able to pick up on it. But she didn’t have a choice. All she had was a small hatchet, and the trees were far too big in her yard for her to cut branches down by herself.  _

_ The creature is practically on top of her before she even knows it’s there. It moves silently, creeping up on her, only its gigantic shadow dwarfing her own giving her any warning that there’s something behind her. Her stomach practically leaves her body as a hand closes around the back of her jacket, yanking her off her feet. A startled yelp leaves her lips as she’s pulled away from the branch she had been inspecting and lifted a good three feet off the ground.  _

_ A growl meets her ears, her brain circulating through all the predators that didn’t go into hibernation that lived in the area, but it’s nothing she recognizes. She’s turned around, coming face to face with a metal mask. The creature holding her is huge and like nothing she’s ever seen before. For one, it’s far underdressed for the weather. The revealed skin is reptilian like, but the fact it was standing on two legs was just the first sign that it was not reptilian, nor probably from the planet at all. It was entirely alien to her.  _

_ It lets out a loud growl in her face, Chloe’s heart nearly stopping at the sound. The growl vibrates through her entire body, her hand gripping the handle of the hatchet tighter. The hatchet. She hadn’t let it go in her surprise when she was yanked off her feet. She grips it even tighter, lifting it before bringing it down hard on the arm that’s holding her up, near the inside of the creature’s elbow. It bellows out, neon green blood leaking from the wound as it lets her go in surprise.  _

_ She drops to the ground, her legs nearly giving out at the force, but she steadies herself, not wasting any time in taking off running back towards her home. Green blood has stained her hatchet, but she doesn’t pay it any mind as she keeps her death grip on it. Trees explode around her as the creature shoots at her, making her duck and weave to try and avoid getting shot.  _

_ She’s nearly to her home when something bites into the back of her leg, cutting clean through the layers on her lower half and into her muscle. It sends her stumbling, landing hard on her knees on the ground. She spins around, finding the creature stalking up towards her. Her leg is on fire, the muscle throbbing in time with her heart.  _

_ Red beams light up on the side of the creature’s mask, forming a triangle-shaped target right at the center of her chest. This was it. This was how she would die. Not peacefully in bed like she’d once hoped, but in the woods in the middle of winter at the hands of an alien creature.  _

_ Chloe closes her eyes, preparing for death, but the shot never comes. There’s a second roar, a different sounding one, before the tree inches from her head explodes. Chloe opens her eyes, finding a second of the reptilian alien creatures having tackled the first, and now they were fighting each other. The new alien is smaller than the other, but still it would dwarf her if she got close enough to it.  _

_ She didn’t plan on testing that theory though, instead reaching to the back of her leg and pulling out the metal device from her leg. It looked almost like an arrowhead, but much larger than any she’d ever seen. She doesn’t spend much time inspecting it, instead forcing herself to her feet. The creatures were engaged in an intense battle and she didn’t want to wind up in the middle of it, more than she already had. So, she pushes through the pain, starting to make her way back towards her home. _

_ She’s almost out of earshot of the battle, which was quite the distance since they were making quite the ruckus when she stops. A thought runs through her mind, guilty and tugging at her heartstrings. _

_ The second creature had saved her. Whether that was its intention, it had inadvertently saved her. Could she really walk away and leave it to possibly end up in the same situation as her? Who would be there to help it? Who’s to say the larger of the two wouldn’t hunt her down as soon as it finished off the smaller one? She had injured it, outright attacking it. She hadn’t known if it was going to hurt her or not, and she had enraged it by trying to get away from it, acting out of fear. So, by extension, the smaller creature’s death could be her fault.  _

_ Chloe curses her soft heart before turning around, pushing herself back the way she’d come, following the sounds of the fight. It sounded closer now, brutal and loud. She was glad she lived in the middle of nowhere, no doubt having tons of people around would make this even more dangerous. Not that she was one to talk. She was walking back into a fight she was far from prepared to join.  _

_ The creatures have formed a small clearing when she finds them again. The trees in the area have been either uprooted or knocked down. The larger one seems to have the upper hand, beating on the smaller one like nobody’s business. So her gut feeling had been right. It looked like she was about to repay the favor she owed to the alien creature.  _

_ It’s not hard to sneak up on them, the ruckus they’re making loud enough to cover her limping footsteps through the snow. She grips her trusty hatchet, coming up behind the larger alien as it sends fist after fist into the smaller alien’s mask. She hesitates for a second, waiting for the creature’s arm to be lowered before she brings the hatchet down, throwing all of her weight into the strike. It digs deep into the creature’s uncovered shoulder, neon green blood spraying and painting the snow at her hit.  _

_ She sees it coming, but her brain reacts too slowly, the creature’s hand sweeping out and hitting her hard. She goes flying back, landing several yards away in the snow. The impact has her choking on air, something cracking audibly at the force of the hit and the impact with the ground. She struggles to bring air back into her lungs, dazed as the snow-covered trees dance and swirl above her head. She vaguely recognizes the sound of something coming towards her, but she can’t do anything. Can’t bring herself to move.  _

_ Chloe’s eyes try to focus on the alien above her, the large creature standing over her. Had it been worth it, signing her death warrant to save an alien that probably didn’t give two shits about her? At least she wouldn’t die with a guilty conscience.  _

_ But the strike never comes. The large alien disappears from her line of sight, Chloe forced to watch the sky darkening. Or was that just her vision fading out? She can barely register the fight happening just a few feet away until she can’t hear it anymore. Was it over or was this her losing her own fight to stay awake?  _

_ The alien appears in her line of sight again, kneeling down next to her. No, this was the smaller one. She could recognize the differences in their helmets, the differences in their sizes. Was he going to finish her off? Kill her for trying to help him? Thank her before leaving her there to freeze and die? The last thing Chloe sees before her vision goes dark is her hatchet in its hand, coming down towards her.  _

_ *********************** _

Chloe sinks to her knees, staring out at the darkness of space. The alien had abducted her. She had been sure it would kill her too. She had gone in to repay her debt, to help it without even knowing if it was friendly or not. One of its kind had tried to kill her. What had made her think the other one would be any different? 

The sound of an airlock releasing has her spinning around, crouched on the floor next to the window. The alien is there, stepping into the room. He’s a hulking mass of muscle and strength, threatening despite the small amount of armor and lack of visible weaponry he carried. But she had seen what they were capable of with their bare hands, felt what they were capable of with just their strength alone. 

She feels vulnerable, exposed where she is. She’s completely at its mercy and she has no idea what its intentions are. Would it probe her? Run tests on her? Experiment on her? Did it have other intentions? Had she been brought along just for its simple pleasure? She has no idea, and the mask covering its face offers her no hints to its mood, its thoughts, its plans regarding her. 

Chloe takes a deep breath, the air stuttering in her throat as she stares at the hulking alien in the room with her. “You...you brought me here?”

It nods its head once in a quick motion. At least it understands her. 

“I want to go home. I want to go back to Earth.” 

It shakes its head once, again a quick motion. 

Chloe feels her throat wanting to close to hold in sobs, tears threatening to spill. “Why? Why won’t you take me back?” 

It looks down at its wrist gauntlet, pressing a few buttons before looking back to her, speaking with a mechanical voice. “Can’t. Bad Bloods know you now. Too dangerous.” 

The words make little sense to Chloe’s already throbbing head, her brain refusing to put any meaning to them. She drops to her knees again, her body folding in on itself as pain and fear take over. She presses her forehead against the floor, the metal cool against her skin. Despite the heat in the room, she’s shivering, tears starting to pool on the metal below her face. 

Once again she’s taken by surprise at the large creature’s silence, her body springing into action as a warm hand touches her back. She sits up, spinning and throwing a wild fist in his direction. He’s faster than she is though, catching her hand in one of his own huge ones. He’s quick to catch her other hand, holding both of her wrists in one of his hands. His sharp nails prick her skin as she struggles against him, drawing small beads of blood to the surface. His hand smears it on her skin as he forcefully moves her, her back ending up against his chest, both of them sitting on the floor. 

A clicking sound starts deep in its chest, reverberating against her back. It vibrates through her, continuous and slow. It was a purr used by his kind to calm distressed pups and occasionally a distressed or wounded female. He knew humans weren’t capable of this, and didn’t use this to calm their young, but he figures he would try it. Her reaction had not been what he expected, and he had hoped the sedative would keep her asleep for longer than it had.

Eventually his plan does work. Chloe goes limp against his chest, tears still trailing down her face. 

“I just want to go home.” Her voice is weak, hardly more than a whimper. 

He’s warm against her back, his body heat unnatural to her. It had been a long time since a human had held her, but still she knows humans weren’t as warm as him. Her head feels heavy, the throbbing worse from her crying fit. She’s tired and worn out, her head lolling against the creature’s shoulder. Its purring had calmed her down, her brain pulling up something she’d read on the internet about cats purrs calming humans. She’s exhausted and her brain has had too much to deal with, too much information to try to process through, and she finds herself drifting off to sleep. 

************

The little  _ ooman  _ female is finally asleep. 

Tarei’hsan watches her, her body temperature finally lowered, her breathing even. Things had not gone like he’d planned. He knew revealing she was no longer on Earth would be a messy situation, but he had planned on easing her into the idea. He’d forgotten about the viewports on the ship, and she had stumbled across one, making the discovery on her own. 

He wished he could make her understand. 

He’d been sent out to hunt the Bad Bloods, followed them planet to planet, always a step behind them until they’d dallied too long on Earth. He’d finally caught up with them, just in time to find one ready to kill the little  _ ooman  _ currently in his arms. He hadn’t intended on her being there, nor on saving her life. He had a duty he was tasked with, to wipe out the Bad Bloods before they could do any more harm.

But the little  _ ooman  _ was surprising. 

She had come back and saved his life. He had been losing the fight, ready to end both their lives when she’d appeared. She’d nearly died to give him an upper hand. He couldn’t stay there to let other Bad Bloods from that clan take their revenge. Not when she had risked her life for his. 

He was breaking laws having her on his ship. 

But she had proven her bravery. Taken on a Bad Blood to help him. She’d been close to death by the time he’d gotten her to his ship, giving him no other choice but to give her his blood to make sure she healed properly. 

He had broken so many laws in a short amount of time, and he can’t even explain why. 

He could have left her there. Returned to his ship and forgot her existence. But he hadn’t. He had brought her on board his ship, taken her away from her home planet. 

_ Pauk,  _ he was an idiot. 

Maybe it was the soft curves of her body, the smooth skin pressed close against his own. Maybe it was the musky scent that burned his throat emanating from her. Maybe it was the fire that burned inside her, what he’d seen when she’d attacked the Bad Blood, tried to attack him despite her obvious distress. 

He can’t explain it. 

He doesn’t dwell on it much longer, carefully shifting the female  _ ooman  _ in his arms before lifting her off the floor. He steps back down into his nest, laying her down carefully in the pelts. He covers her body again, watching her for a moment longer before taking his leave, heading back towards the controls. 

*********

Chloe wakes up in the strange bed again. She’s alone once again, something she’s partially glad about. She had lost control of herself, lost any sense of sanity when she’d seen what lay outside the walls surrounding her. She was flying through space. She was some unknown distance from Earth, from her home, from everything she knew. She was on an alien’s spaceship, flying through space to god knows where. 

The entire thing seemed absurd. 

But then again, she had fought off a giant alien reptile creature that had wanted to kill her what seemed like hours ago to her. She’d saved the life of one of them, nearly risking her own to do so. The alien had said she wasn’t safe on Earth. That the “Bad Bloods” knew her. 

That sentence didn’t make any sense to her, but she tries not to dwell on it for the moment. She had more pressing matters. First things first, she really had to pee. 

She climbs out of the bed again, feeling along the wall. There had to be another door somewhere. As soon as she gets close part of the wall opens up, revealing what looks like, to her best estimation, the bathroom. It’s very much nothing like the bathrooms she’s used to, but she does her best. 

Second, she’s starving. 

She’s not sure how long it had been since she’d eaten last, remembering breakfast that morning, but she’s not sure how long ago that day had been. It could have been that morning for all she knew, or it could have been weeks ago. Her sense of time was almost nothing, the never ceasing inky darkness outside the window doing nothing to help. 

Chloe makes her way towards the exit of the room, the door sliding open automatically again. She hesitantly steps out, staying on her toes in case there were more of them on the ship. Or for anything unexpected, really. She wasn’t even sure how big the ship was. 

Not very big, she finds out, walking the entire thing before finding her way to what had to be the control room. The helm. Whatever they called it in spaceships. The door slides open as she comes near, the alien creature spinning around in his chair at the noise. A trilling purr sounds from his throat, but Chloe doesn’t pay any attention to it, her eyes drawn out the front window. She can’t help herself, stepping up closer to get a better view. 

The planet they’re flying by was unlike anything she’d ever seen before. Judging by their angle of flight, it wasn’t the one they were going to, but it shocked her nonetheless. She stares at it as they pass, only realizing her mouth is hanging open and she’s nearly standing right next to the pilot’s chair then. 

She steps away, blushing slightly. “Sorry.” She suddenly realizes how bare she is, still only in a tank top and her underwear, crossing her arms over her chest, her fingernails picking at her skin out of habit. “I’m hungry.” 

She feels strange saying that phrase to an alien. She feels like a kid, asking some strange grownup she’s known for five minutes for something to eat. She doesn’t even know if the alien will feed her, or let her starve until they arrive at their destination. Did they eat? Was there food on the ship? 

The alien stands from his seat, and her guess was right. He towers over her by a good two feet, her head not even close to reaching its shoulder. She really felt like a child then, having to bend her neck to stare up at its mask covered face. 

It motions at her with its head to follow and she does, having to speed up to keep up with its fast-paced steps. Another set of doors opens up as it approaches, making its way through them. She follows, unsure of what to do. There’s a table and chairs set up and what she assumes is a food storage area. Again, it’s entirely alien to her, but then again, the entire situation was alien to her. 

She’s directed into one of the large seats, finding it surprisingly cushiony. She feels like a child again, sitting in a chair that’s too big. She watches the creature’s back as it prepares food, Chloe finally questioning what, and if, she can even eat on the ship. His kind obviously ate, but what did they eat? 

It places a metal plate in front of her after a few moments with what looks like chunky mashed potatoes on it, but it smells sort of like a roasted vegetable. She’s reminded of the time she had tried to get into the cauliflower craze, attempting cauliflower mashed potatoes. They hadn’t turned out so great, and even this alien food looked more appetizing than that had. 

Chloe’s stomach cramps uncomfortably and she doesn’t hesitate to dig in, shovelling the strange food into her mouth. It tastes bitter to her, but she doesn’t care. She wasn’t in a position to be picky. It wasn’t like there was a grocery store or a McDonald’s they could pull over and order from. 

The creature sits across from her, watching her through its mask. She was still left with a lot of questions, starting to get curious about her alien...what would she call him? Captor? Abductor? Savior? Companion? She certainly didn’t feel they were on the terms of the latter. Captor seemed a bit too extreme. She obviously had free rein of the ship, and it hadn’t seemed mad that she escaped the room. It was feeding her so obviously it wanted her to live. Savior seemed a bit too gracious. It had taken her from Earth, after all. Abductor it was then. 

Before she knows it, her plate is empty. She feels full, her stomach protesting a bit at being fed so much at once. It had been a big helping, no doubt made for someone his size. He’s still sitting there, having not moved other than a slight twitch here or there. 

It isn’t until she’s finished and puts her utensil down that he finally moves, standing from the table. He motions at her again and she follows, slightly unnerved by the silence. He leads her back to the room, following her inside. She pauses at the edge of the bed, turning back to face him. He’s standing in the doorway, watching her again. She chews on her lip, crossing her arms over her chest again. 

“I...can I ask you a question?” She finally breaks the silence. 

It tilts its head to the side, and she takes that as permission. 

“I want to know...why you took me from Earth. I mean...you said that it was because the Bad Bloods knew who I was, but...I don’t know what that means.” 

He’s still for a moment, and she takes that as a sign that he’s pondering her question. 

It’s a few quiet moments before he moves, gripping her arm and steering her towards the bed. He sits down on the pelts, looking up at her. She follows his lead, sitting a few feet from him so she’s facing him. 

He begins to tell her everything, trying his best in broken English using his translator. It was using English from the little his clan had come in contact with and put in the database, and from the little it had picked up from her speaking. He tells her about his kind, their culture, society, the clans. He tells her about the Bad Bloods and his task to hunt down the ones she had the unfortunate pleasure to come in contact with. 

Chloe soaks it all in, trying to make sense of the strange alien culture. He hadn’t directly answered her question, but had at least made her a bit more relaxed. She knew now why the Bad Bloods were so dangerous, dangerous enough he had abducted her to keep her safe. That thought alone makes her stomach churn. She had openly fought one of them. It could have...would have killed her. 

“But...I still don’t understand...why you abducted me? I mean, yeah, I helped you, but...why me?” 

It regards her silently for a moment, a quiet trilling purr leaving its chest again. It leans forward slightly, getting closer to her. She freezes, staying still as it reaches out, clawed fingers stretching towards her face. She wants to flinch, wants to move, but she forces herself to stay still, watching clawed fingers capture a lock of her hair, running the strands lightly through its fingers. She closes her eyes as the backs of its claws brush against her cheek, her heart rate starting to pick up. 

She’d seen the damage he could do, the full force of his strength, yet his touch was nothing but gentle against her. He lets the strand slide through his fingers, moving his hand away before standing up. Chloe lets her eyes open, following him as he makes his way out of the room silently, her heart still racing. 

*******

Chloe wonders if he ever sleeps as she lays in his bed. She had fallen asleep not long after he’d left her, tired from a lengthy conversation with a copious amount of information. She’s warm again, too warm. The pelts are tucked up around her chin, heavy over her body. They weren’t an animal she recognized, not that she knew much about animal fur outside of domesticated animals. But it would make sense for them to be something entirely alien. 

Chloe goes to roll onto her back, but she doesn’t make it far, colliding with something solid behind her. She freezes, her body going rigid immediately. A low purr rumbles against her, the solid mass behind her shifting slightly. So that was her answer. He did sleep. 

She lays still, waiting for him to move, waiting for him to push her away, do something, but he doesn’t. He’s just as still as she is. She takes a few shallow breaths to calm herself, not wanting to disturb him. She wonders if he’s awake, doing the same thing, waiting for her to move. 

After a few tense moments of stillness, she decides she’ll be the first to move. She slowly wiggles forward, pulling herself away from him using the pelts. She doesn’t get very far before a hand grips the back of her tank top, claws scratching lightly against the skin of her back before she’s pulled the few inches back against the alien. He lets her go immediately, settling back down. Chloe lets out the breath she’s holding, letting her body relax again. 

Chloe slowly turns again, shifting until she’s facing him. He’s on his back, face pointed up at the ceiling. He’s still wearing his mask, giving her no sign of if he’s awake or asleep again. She takes this moment to study him up close, not having gotten a chance to do so before. She had been right about him being reptilian like, his scaled mottled skin colored in tones of dark green and almost black, lighter on his chest before getting darker along his arms and shoulders. She can see the clear lines of his muscle, stomach contracting with each breath. She draws her gaze higher up, sliding up his chest and over the strange armor covering one shoulder. She continues her journey, eyeing the strange dreadlocks coming from his head. She reaches a hesitant hand up, her fingers closing around the end of one. 

His hand shoots up, grabbing her own. She tenses, but his grip is light, pinning her hand against his shoulder. His skin is rough against her own, not unlike the alligator bag her mother owned. His face turns towards her, a deep purr sounding from his chest. It’s continuous rumbling against her hand. The dreadlock between her fingers is oddly rough and ridged, like it had been worn down by time. It reminds her a bit of rubber tubing, but slicker. 

The low purring continues as he moves her hand, her fingers releasing the dreadlock. He holds her hand up, studying it. It was small compared to his own, her entire hand, fingers and all, able to fit in his palm. She leans up on her elbow on the other arm, watching him. 

“Do you always wear the mask?” She asks, curiously breaking the silence. 

He shakes his head, releasing her hand. She brings her fingers to his mask, tracing the smooth metal with her fingers. 

“Why won’t you take it off around me?” He doesn’t give her an answer, his hands falling back to his sides. She sits up, crossing her legs beside him. “Come on, you can’t be that bad looking.” 

He stares at her through the mask for a few more moments before reaching up and undoing his mask. Chloe tries to keep her breathing steady, trying not to react as he reveals his face to her for the first time. 

Yeah, okay, maybe it could be that bad. 

It wasn’t that he was ugly; he was just...different. 

Alien. 

His eyes are bright yellow, staring at her with a permanent glare. He lacks a nose, his mouth holding sharp teeth not unlike fangs. His mouth is covered by mandibles, four of them that click together as he moves them. There are spikes lining his face where the dreadlocks sprout from his head. They’re not unlike hair, but they look sharper and coarser. She takes him in, unable to stop the uneasy feelings coursing through her. The fear. His was a face made to be feared. To invoke the need to run from him like a predator chasing prey. That was the feeling she felt around him. Like she was his prey, despite the fact he hadn’t made one remotely violent move towards her. 

The purring starts again, his mandibles twitching as he lifts his hand to her face, moving slowly as not to scare her. She stays still, letting him come closer. His hand could easily cover her face entirely, but she pushes that thought away as he runs a clawed fingertip over her lips. He moves his hand, his thumb and forefinger gripping her chin lightly. His free hand is in her hair again, claws parting the strands, pulling out tangles as he goes. 

She relaxes into his touch, a content sigh leaving her lips. It’s matched by a trilling purr, the alien letting his hands fall back to the pelts. Chloe opens her eyes, letting them fall on his face again. 

“I...I just realized...I don’t know your name.” 

_ “Tarei’hsan.”  _ He answers her, her brain trying to formulate the name. 

“Tarei...hsan?” She tries to form her mouth around it, a frown marring her face. “I feel like you need a nickname.” She tilts her head, her hand coming to rest on his mesh covered stomach absentmindedly. She studies him for a moment. “How about...Tusk.” 

He lets out a trill, his mandibles clicking together. 

She takes that as a yes, smiling. “My name’s Chloe.” 

_ “Kh-loee.”  _ He tries to pronounce it, making her giggle. 

“Maybe I need a nickname too.” 

He reaches up, tracing a claw down her arm.  _ “Yeyinde.”  _

Chloe smiles. “I hope that means something good.” 

His mandibles click again.  _ “Brave.”  _

Chloe’s cheeks heat up, bowing her head bashfully. “I’m not so sure about that.” 

His fingers are on her chin again, lifting her face so she’s looking up at him. He’s sitting up now, his gaze firm as he stares at her.  _ “Brave.”  _

************

It’s two days later by Tarei’hsan’s clock that the nightmares start. It’s the noises that draw him from his sleep. He had grown used to the sounds she’d make, the sighs, the occasional soft sounds from her throat. But this one was different. He thought someone had snuck on board, gotten into their room without him sensing it, and was attacking her. But his eyes find no one in his quick scan of the room. Her eyes are screwed shut, a frown pinching her face. Her hands are gripping the pelt thrown over her, a cry leaving her lips as she twitches in her sleep. 

He’s purring before he even realizes he’s doing it, reaching out towards her tense body. He touches her shoulder, shaking her gently. It takes a couple of tries before she starts awake, yanking herself from his grip. Her eyes are wide in the human expression of fear and he purrs louder at her to calm her. She takes two deep breaths before she calms, running her fingers through her hair. 

“Sorry. I...bad dream.” 

She pulls her knees to her chest, keeping her gaze lowered from him. He trills at her, reaching out a hand. She stares at it for a moment before slowly reaching forward, putting her hand in his. He pulls her forward and into his arms, holding her like females of his kind hold their pups. His kind weren’t known for being affectionate, weren’t known for being fond of prolonged touch. But he knew humans were. He knows by the way she relaxes in his hold, practically melting against his chest. He sits back, holding her against his chest, a quiet purr rumbling through them both. 

He knows she doesn’t go back to sleep. He knows he can’t either. He wasn’t a stranger to night terrors. He knew they were natural to humans, their own brains frightening them in their sleep. His kind didn’t dream, didn’t sleep like humans did. Humans were strange creatures, weak but cunning enough to beat some of the best Yautja warriors. Some clans thought them disgusting, pitiful creatures. Some considered them worthy opponents. But he had not heard of one going so far as he had. To save one, bring her aboard his ship and intend to take her back to his clan ship. She had proven herself worthy in his eyes, but his eyes did not matter. 

*********

Tarei’hsan had slowed the ship significantly. He could have been back to his clan ship in a matter of a couple days if he’d wanted to. But he didn’t. He knew what was waiting for him once he returned. Taking her aboard would be a risk. They could kill her whether they believed what he claimed. He didn’t want that to happen. He considered leaving his clan behind, flying to some distant planet on the far side of the galaxy and hiding there with her. But they would find him, eventually. That would consign both of them to certain death. 

He stares out at the space in front of him, his mandibles clicking as he thinks of what to do. He didn’t want to lose the strange little  _ ooman  _ that had caught his attention. But he also didn’t want to risk running either. He’s so lost in thought he almost doesn’t hear her approaching. It isn’t until she’s close enough to touch him that he whirls around in his seat, startling her. 

She takes half a step back, dropping the hand that had been outstretched at his movement. He lets out a quiet purr, letting his body relax. She lets out a breath, crossing her arms across her chest. 

_ “Yeyinde.” _

“You didn’t come back for a bit. I just...wanted to check on you.”

He trills in response, reaching out for her again. He doesn’t move, letting him pull her onto his lap before he turns his chair again, letting her see out the front viewport. She leans back against him, legs spread over his own. He watches her for a moment before pulling his mask off, leaning down to let his mandibles tangle in her hair. She smelled good, clean. He had shown her the bathing room, letting her clean herself up. She smelled like soap, but he can also detect her natural scent beneath it. He feels his own body react to it, stomach clenching in response. 

Chloe’s nose tickles for a moment. She had been lost in thought, staring out at the hundreds of stars in front of them. Tusk had his mandibles in her hair again, something he’d taken to doing recently. She was okay with that, considering her hair was clean now. His body was moving slightly under hers, his muscles flexing as he presses closer to her hair. Something musky tickles her nose, reminding her a bit of a men’s locker room at a gym. Tusk’s arms wrap around her body, pulling her tighter against him. Any tighter and she’s worried he might crack something. 

“Tusk...” She says, her hands lifting to his arms where they’re holding onto her. “Any tighter and I won’t be able to breathe.” 

He doesn’t loosen his hold, his back bending slightly over her as his mandibles move down her hair, touching the skin of her face. She stays still, barely breathing as the sharp mandibles move along her skin, tracing along her jaw and neck. She holds back a shiver, goosebumps forming on her skin from the feeling. How easily he could kill her. One hard squeeze and he would pop a few internal organs, puncture something with a broken rib. One hard bite from his sharp teeth and she’d bleed out in a matter of minutes. 

The thought thrills her. 

She feels as if she’s lost her mind, biting back a moan as his mandibles trace over the sensitive skin of her neck. She can feel an uncomfortable wetness between starting between her legs. It had been a long time since anyone had touched her so intimately, since anyone had been so close to her. Since anyone had that effect on her. Tusk’s purrs deepen, her entire body seeming to vibrate with the sound. She tilts her head back, exposing herself to him, making herself vulnerable. He jerks against her, his sharp fang-like teeth scraping against the skin of her neck as his mandibles wrap nearly clear around her throat. His forked tongue is rough, almost like a cat’s, as it slides against her sweat slicked skin. She’s on fire, every nerve ending awake and firing as he touches her. 

She doesn’t know what had changed, what had brought on this frenzy in both of them. Maybe he had alluded to it in the very beginning. The increasing touches, the way he shamelessly slept next to her, the way he’d walked around after coming out of the bathing room in buck naked, forcing her to bury herself in the pelts in his bed out of embarrassment. Maybe it had been his plan all along in taking her, using her for his pleasure. But if that was the case, wouldn’t he have just done it? 

Her hand is on his before she can put much more thought into it, her brain buzzing as his tongue burns a trail down her neck and shoulder. He lets her direct him, moving his hand to the warmth between her legs. She’s horribly damp, soaking through the underwear and onto her thighs as she presses his much larger hand against her. His claws bite at her skin, but it just adds to the sensation, her hips bucking against his thick fingers as he explores her through her underwear. She doesn’t know what females of his kind are like anatomically speaking. She’s not even entirely sure what he’s like anatomically. She had ducked so fast under the pelts when he’d come out naked she hadn’t bothered to sneak a peak at him. 

He growls low, wrapping his hand around the waistband of her panties before yanking them off. She wants to protest, but he returns the rough pads of his fingers to her slit and all complaints are forgotten before they can leave her mouth. His thighs hold hers open, her hips lifting to press into his hand. She’s disadvantaged, unable to really see him, forced instead to look out at the inky darkness of space and the passing gas giant. The view really settles the reality of the current situation. She was getting off at the hands of an alien in a spaceship probably hundreds of light-years away from Earth. 

But the way his claws brush against her clit have the thoughts drifting from her mind. 

Sounds are leaving her mouth now, moans and whimpers that are like sweet music to his ears. He’s never heard anything like it, his kind unable to make such noises. He’s slick and hard, straining against his coverings as she writhes against him. He knows he has to be careful. Her kind weren’t entirely different from his, just distinguishingly smaller. He knew little about the human mating process but he had a plethora of experience mating his own kind. He’d sired enough pups to know he was well liked and even sought after by a few females. But none of them had affected him the way the tiny human in his arms was in this moment. 

She was  _ tight.  _

Careful of his claws, he attempts to work a finger into her slick passage, her walls gripping him tight like a vice. She’s panting where she’s limp against his chest, gripping his arm that’s still around her tightly. He lets out a trilling purr, working his finger into her. She opens up around it slowly, letting him slip more and more into her. If she was this tight around his finger,  _ pauk  _ what she would feel like around him. 

But he holds back. 

He was big. Not just in general compared to her. He was big in all areas. The last thing he wanted to do was hurt her, and so he could control himself. If she saw him and was afraid, he wouldn’t force himself on her. A good male could control himself enough around a female, prove to her he was worthy of taking her. Despite his length pressing uncomfortably against his coverings, he wouldn’t lose himself like a Young Blood around this  _ ooman.  _

He releases his hold around her middle, his hand trailing down the smooth skin of a trembling thigh. She arches away from him, her back bowing as he slips his finger in and out of her. 

“Tusks.” His nickname leaves her lips in a moan, her head falling back against his shoulder revealing more of her neck to him. If only she knew what it meant in his culture to leave herself so vulnerable to him in this moment. 

She reaches back, her hand tangling in his dreadlocks. He practically lets out a roar, his claws digging into her skin until she hisses, five red dots appearing on her skin. He freezes, pulling his claws out of her skin. He looks down, finding her staring up at him before a wicked smirk twists the corner of her lips upward. He doesn’t have time to consider the meaning before she wraps a hand around one of his dreadlocks, yanking hard enough to jerk his head to the side. 

He lets out a roar this time, all pretences gone as he stands, holding her under his arm as he practically runs back to the room. He drops to his knees on the pelts, her body flopping from his grip onto her back on the furs. She’s spread open before him, the scent of her leaching into him, driving him wild. His body is still aflame from her touch in his locks, leaving all doubt in his mind behind. He undoes the straps, yanking off his coverings, leaving him bare and presenting in front of her for her approval. Chloe stares at him wide eyed, taking him in truly for the first time. 

Jesus, he’s  _ huge.  _

She tries to form words, taking in his familiar shape but entirely alien form. It was certainly phallic in nature, but the top of it flared out, ridges and bumps lining the sides. It was thicker at the base than at the top, making her wonder how in the hell it was all going to fit inside her. It had to be the length of her forearm easily. 

She stumbles over her words, trying to think of something, anything to say as he stays completely still, his length moving as he breathes. “O-Oh...” She sits up, cautiously reaching a hand out. 

He’s slick, almost like a natural lubrication. She’s grateful for that, not even sure that her excessive wetness would help him fit inside her. He lets out a breath as she touches him, the warmth of it fanning over her head. He’s warm in her hand, her fingers barely able to close all the way around it. She doesn’t have much experience in the realm of male anatomy. Not that it would help her in this situation. 

She looks up at his face, his yellow eyes burning into her. She moves her hand along his shaft experimentally, watching him. His mandibles move, clawed hands curling into fists as she touches him. She wonders what he tastes like, but she’s not sure she’s quite ready for that yet, still trying to mentally prepare herself for fitting him inside her. His finger had been big, but this was something else entirely. 

“Tusk...” She bites her lip, fingers teasing his head. 

His hips jerk as his hand cups her chin, lifting her face back up to him. “Yeyinde can...say...no.” 

Chloe feels tears well in her eyes despite the current situation. She was half naked in an alien spaceship with an equally half naked alien standing over her while she had her hand wrapped around its dick and he was telling her she could say no to him. Even as far gone as both of them obviously were, he was saying she could change her mind. That he would respect her. 

“I...Thank you. But...I...I want to.” She feels as if she seals her fate with those words. Not that she was complaining. 

He carefully slides out of her hand, moving so he’s laying down on his back. She doesn’t understand the importance of what he had just done, what he was doing for her in that moment. In normal Yautja mating, the female would fight to get the male to that position, a battle between the two of them with one of them coming out on top. By laying down for her, he was submitting to her, letting her know that she was in control. He could have easily dominated her, taken her from behind as most males did to females. But she wasn’t Yautja. She was an  _ ooman.  _ It would not have been a fair fight. 

She seems to know what to do, straddling his thick waist with her thighs. She pulls her tank top off, tossing it somewhere on the floor. He reaches his hands up, claws brushing over her nipples. She shivers, biting her lip as she moves over him. She’s still wet, sliding the tip of him along her slit a couple times. He watches her, watches the tip of him disappear into her. 

He felt thicker than he looked, Chloe burning at the stretch of him. She presses her hands into his stomach, holding herself up as she goes centimeter by centimeter along his length. Despite both their natural lubricants, it’s still a tough stretch. She’s panting and shaking, his own breathing even and deep as he traces her nipple with his claws. Her own hand goes to her clit, circling it to help her ease up around him. 

He doesn’t move, letting her take as much of him as he can. He’s impressed by her, nearly his entire length disappearing into her before she stops, fluttering around him. He lets out a growl but doesn’t move, proving his self control by letting her call the shots. She slowly moves, the ridges along his dick rubbing against her in a way that has her legs shaking already. She knows she will not last long. It had been a long time since she’d had sex, or even orgasmed and she knows by the way he hit that spot inside of her this would be over before she knew it. 

Tarei’hsan watches the little  _ ooman  _ as she writhes on top of him. She’s tighter than he had imagined, squeezing him almost painfully. Every so often she’d flutter around him, making him growl in response. He felt like a Young Blood again, ready to lose control of himself already but he holds himself in check. But the way her back arches, pressing her breasts into his hands, the way she grinds against him is making controlling himself hard. He had been holding himself back, wanting to focus purely on the task he had been assigned and had forgone mating during their last mating season. And now he was breaking another law, mating with his tiny  _ ooman.  _

Something in his brain snaps as she cries out, body shaking as she tries to keep up her pace. He knows she’s getting tired, so he moves his hands down to her hips, moving her with his own strength. She lets him, gripping his wrists as he bounces her on his cock. His brain pictures her dripping with his seed, pumping her full of it. Seeing the tiny  _ ooman  _ swollen with his pup, breeding an entire army of them with her. 

He can’t help himself, thrusting up hard into her, a startled yelp leaving her as he sinks even deeper into her, his hips snapping up into hers. He’s lost all control of himself, her walls fluttering, gripping him tighter and tighter until she lets out a scream, nearly suffocating him with how tight she grips him. He matches her scream with a roar, nails digging into her waist, drawing blood as he spills into her, yanking her down before sinking his teeth into her shoulder. She jerks against him, yelping in pain, but he’s too lost to pay any mind to it in that moment. The tanginess of her blood hits his tongue, her body shaking against his as she squeezes around him once more. He’s pulsing hot inside her, twitching as he empties himself into her. 

He holds her there for a few moments, her body twitching against his chest still as he pulls himself away from her shoulder, laving over the wound with his tongue. Her eyes are closed as he moves her, rolling her onto her back, separating them. He gets up, going to the bathing room to grab a cloth to clean the blood and seed off of her. 

Her hand is between her legs when he returns, gathering some of his seed before bringing it close to her face. 

“Your cum is green too?” She asks, looking up at him. 

He huffs out a laugh, watching his seed drip out of her. It was less neon than his blood, but it was still shockingly green. He cleans the blood off her shoulder, grabbing his Medicomp and using gel to close the wounds on her shoulder and his claw marks on her hips before cleaning his seed from between her legs. She whimpers slightly as he touches her, no doubt she’ll be sore when she tries to move again. 

She watches him retreat back to the bathing room, taking him in fully. He certainly was a beautiful sight. An odd, but beautiful sight. 

He returns, stripping off the rest of his armor before laying down next to her. She curls up against him, resting her head against his shoulder. He wraps an arm around her, tracing her smooth skin. He was a goner now, having broken practically every sacred law in his clan against  _ oomans.  _ But he finds no regret. The soft body against his, the warm puffs of her breath against his skin as she drifts off to sleep. He would betray his clan for her. Fight every last Elder until they were all dead in order to keep her. Nothing would take her from him. 

The lights of the ship go on, disturbing their peaceful moment, an alarm blaring obnoxiously in warning.


	2. Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tusk makes his decision, something that changes his and Chloe's lives forever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, I finally wrote it! Finally did it! I started writing this right after I finished the first part but my muse finally bit me in the ass and got me moving. Plus, I wanted to get something out before Halloween. I had planned to do a whole thing for October, but things didn't quite work out. So, at least have some giant murder lizard love!!
> 
> P.S. Whoever can figure out the ending gets extra love!!! Have fun!!!

Tarei’hsan frantically presses buttons on the console, the ship shuddering as shots are fired at them. Chloe is safely tucked away in a pod, strapped in and ready in case things go wrong. The coordinates are set, ready to send her to the nearest oxygen-based planet. All he has to do is press a button. 

He weaves the ship, dodging fire as he attempts to start a jump. He needs to get as far from there as he can, his ship only capable of taking so much fire. Things had not gone as he’d hoped. He had thought they were in empty space, but it appeared there were others in the area. 

He had abandoned the idea of returning to his Clan Ship. There was a chance they would be killed on sight. There was a chance they would kill Chloe and make him watch. There was a chance she would be hated for her entire time there, shunned by the males and scorned by the females. He couldn’t put her through that. So he had changed course, cut the ties with his clan, and sent the ship off to empty space where he would have time to figure out where they were going to go. 

But then she’d come in, smelling like sweet meat, clean and musky and he’d completely lost control. He’d mated with her, lost himself in her. He’d let his guard down and now they were being pursued by another spacecraft. He had sent the ship right into a trap and now he was paying the price. 

He curses, steering away from another blast. The ship was almost ready, vibrating from the force of the damage and the power needed to make such a big jump. It was the safest place he knew for both of them and their best bet on a place to lay low for a while. 

The wormhole opens in front of him, his ship jumping through, thankfully closing before the other ship can follow. He slows his ship down, preparing to enter the atmosphere of the planet before him. He keeps Chloe stored away, wanting to be ready for anything. She would forgive him later, he’s sure of it. 

He lands on the planet, kicking up dust as he sets the ship down roughly. He runs a scan, pulling up everything that’s damaged. He’d need to do repairs before they did any more serious traveling. He makes sure the cloaking is on before he leaves the pilot’s seat, heading back towards the pods. He opens the pod, catching Chloe as she slides out. It would be a few minutes before she would wake up, so he returns to the pilot’s seat, holding her in his arms. 

She’s soft and warm against him, and he can’t help but remember how she’d felt wrapped around him, tight and wet. He’d let her dominate him, let her take control. He’d wanted to fuck her like a female but he knew she was more fragile, more delicate than the females of his kind. He didn’t want to risk hurting her. She’d been so receptive to him, the sounds she’d made, the way she shivered when he touched her. He can feel himself getting hard again and pushes the thoughts away. That was for later. 

Right now, he needed to find them someplace to stay, someplace to lay low. 

Chloe starts to shift in his arms, groaning a little as she stretches. He purrs quietly to her, smoothing a hand down her back. She groans again, nuzzling closer to his chest. He stares down at her for a moment, tracing her features with his eyes. Yautja don’t define beauty in the same way humans do. Yautja don’t have a concept of beauty at all. Strength, power, hunting, and fighting abilities. Those were things Yautja took into consideration when looking for mates. But this small  _ ooman _ , pathetically weak compared to him, had warped his ideals. She had wormed her way into his mind, into his heart, and changed him. But he had been the one to let it happen, too. He had let her worm her way in, twist him inside, change him. He liked it. 

He leans back in his seat, cradling his tiny  _ ooman  _ in his arms. His clan may not agree, may not accept her, but he was willing to let it all go, leave it all behind for the sake of his  _ ooman.  _ His  _ Yeyinde.  _

Chloe starts to stir again, Tarei’hsan’s helmet picking up her rising heart rate and her quickened breaths. He doesn’t loosen his hold, staring down at her as her eyes flutter then open. She frowns for a moment, looking around, her body tensing slightly. 

“Tusk.” She says, her voice groggy and rough. 

He purrs in reply, shifting her slightly to free one of his arms, reaching out a clawed finger to brush a stray hair from her eyes. He lets the claw trace lightly down the side of her face, watching her struggle to come out of the drugged sleep she had been forced into. He had given her half a dose, knowing her biology was different, and regardless of his blood running through her system, he could have easily killed her with a full dose. 

“What...happen...” 

“Attack.” He says, searching for the words in his database. “Hostile ship.” 

“Where are we now?” She asks, rubbing her eyes. 

“Safe.” 

She groans, laying her face against the armor on his shoulder. He continues to hold her, hoping he did the right thing. Hoping he made the right decision. He was forever an outcast, leaving his clan, his family behind, all for this tiny, fragile human in his arms. Was she worth all of it? 

Yes. 

He could start his own family, his own clan. He had heard of it being done. Bad Bloods did it all the time. He would be his own leader now. 

********

Chloe rubs at her eyes, bare feet kicking up sand as she follows close behind Tusk. She was still groggy and disoriented, but Tusk had told her that would wear off soon. She pulls the blanket tighter around her, picking up her pace so she doesn’t get lost behind the long strides of her alien companion. 

She hadn’t gotten much out of him, not that she had asked much to begin with. Wherever they had ended up, he had deemed it safe enough for them, at least for the time being. Chloe starts to get flashbacks to the time she’d watched Star Wars, being reminded of it as they enter the metal building. It wasn’t enough that she was being reminded of it, she’s living it. She was on an alien planet in outer space. Obviously one that was heavily trafficked, as the many ships sitting outside had told her. 

She keeps her head down, a blanket covering her as she sticks close to Tusk nearly pressed up against his back. He’s speaking with someone she can’t see, not that she really wants to. It was enough of a shock to register the fact she wasn’t on Earth anymore, let alone the fact she was with an alien...an alien she had fucked...to try and wrap her brain around the fact there were more aliens around her. They were all aliens to her. Or was she the alien? 

Chloe grips the back of Tusk’s belt as he speaks with someone, pressing up against his warmth. It had been warm outside, but the metal floor is cold against her bare feet. Thankfully no one seems to pay them any mind, giving them a wide berth in fact. Perhaps it was the nature of her companion. Or maybe that was just alien etiquette. 

She’s pulled along as Tusk begins to move, making his way through crowds of creatures. Chloe keeps her head down, holding onto Tusk as he weaves his way towards a staircase, heading up. She nearly runs into his back when he stops, heading down a hallway before opening a door. She’s ushered inside before he closes the door, the airlock hissing. She pulls the blanket down so it’s wrapped around her shoulders, looking up at him. He’s at the small window, glancing out. Chloe takes a moment to look around the room, taking it in. 

Had she not known she was on a different planet, she would have guessed she was in some sort of strange hotel. Maybe something one would find in Roswell or the Southwest. The entire room is metal, giving it a very futuristic look despite the obvious wear and tear. There’s what seems to be a bed in the corner, and a desk in another. There’s a door next to the bed, what she assumes leads to the bathroom. What she hopes leads to the bathroom. 

Tusk moves from the window finally, making his way towards her. She looks up at him, craning her head to see him as he stops inches from her. He lifts his hand, clawed fingers tracing over her cheek before his palm presses against her skin. She leans into his touch, letting her eyes flutter closed. 

“What happens now?” She asks, lips brushing the rough skin of his palm. 

“Stay until safe.” He says through his helmet, claws running through her hair gently. “Then...I don’t know.” 

She opens her eyes, looking up at him. “We’re not going to your clan are we?” 

He shakes his head. “Too many...risks. Not...worth it.” 

Chloe frowns slightly, pulling away from him and sitting on the bed. He watches her, mandibles clicking in confusion. 

“I can’t help but feel this is partially my fault. Actually, it is all my fault. I’m the reason you can’t go back to your family. Your clan. You did all this for me and now you can’t ever see them again.” Chloe runs a hand through her hair tugging on it slightly. “Your entire life is ruined because of me. 

The hand on her shoulder startles her. She had been so lost in her own thoughts she hadn’t even noticed him move close to her. Her back hits the mattress with a hard thump, nearly knocking the wind out of her. It’s not as soft as she’s used to, not even the pile of furs she’d been sleeping on the past few days weren’t as firm as this mattress. Despite its firmness it still dips as he climbs on, heavy weight denting the firm substance. 

She can feel the warmth of him as he kneels over her, caging her in under his body. He lowers himself down, holding himself up on his elbows. His mask is nearly touching her face, close enough she can see the roughness of the metal, the divots and impurities in it. 

They lay like that for a few moments, breathing in each other’s air before a single word is uttered. 

_ “No.” _

Chloe stares into the eyes of the helmet, lips parted slightly as she breathes in the slightly musky scent coming off him. She feels exposed suddenly, the blanket had fallen open. She had been forced to dress in her dirty clothes, her torn pants and the tank top she’d worn under her layers on Earth. The room is cold, making her aware of her lack of bra but he doesn’t seem to notice. 

_ “Yeyinde.”  _ He breathes out, shifting ever so slightly over her. “Worth it.” 

Chloe bites back tears at his words. They were simple but she could understand. He wouldn’t have risked taking her on his ship in the first place, he would have left her to die in the cold on Earth if he hadn’t thought she was worth it. He wouldn’t have risked his entire life, he wouldn’t have saved her. He wouldn’t have let himself be so vulnerable with her...he wouldn’t have been so gentle with her had he not thought her worth it. He hadn’t left his family, his clan because he felt like he had to. He was doing this because he thought she was worth it. He was putting her above everything he knew. 

He pushes himself up, kneeling over her on the bed. Chloe chases him, pulling herself up so she’s kneeling as well, only putting her about eye level with his chest. She puts her hands on his shoulders, bringing herself up to press her lips against the metal of his helmet. He tenses slightly under her hands, but she moves back before he gets too uncomfortable. 

“I understand now.” She says, sitting back on her heels. “Besides, we don’t need them. We can be our own clan.” 

***********

It’s dark out when Tusk returns to the room. Chloe is wrapped up under layers of blankets, trying to get warm. It was warm on the planet during the day, but the nights were something else. Chloe had her back to the door, not wanting to move out of the warm spot she’d created. She knew Tusk would be disappointed in her lack of awareness, of her lack of self-defense, but she was tired and finally starting to get warm. 

She hears the familiar hiss of air as he removes his helmet, setting it on the desk with a clunk. A few more clunks follow, meaning he had stripped off his armor. The bed dips as he settles on it, cold air meeting her skin as he slips under the blankets. She instantly rolls back against him, seeking out his warmth. She can feel the wire netting against his chest, pulsing out warmth under the blankets. She sighs contently, her sigh being met with a purr. She smiles softly to herself, a thick arm wrapping around her stomach, pulling her tighter against the solid body behind her, mandibles twitching in her hair. She feels small like this, his sheer size evident in moments like this. She’d been close to him, closer than this. She’d seen more of him than she ever thought she would when she first woke up in his ship. They’d shared an extremely intimate moment, one she wasn’t even sure the cultural meaning of to him completely, and to be totally honest, she wouldn’t mind doing it again. 

But not right now. 

She’s tired, the last of the drugs he’d used to knock her out wearing off, leaving her feeling exhausted despite the fact they’d put her to sleep. Despite the unknowns, more on her part than even his, she feels safe and comfortable in his arms. She knows he’ll take care of them both. He had so far. 

********

The clothes help infinitely. Chloe’s not sure where they’d come from, or how they look perfect for humans, or even how he’d gotten the right size, but they fit almost perfectly and they’re extremely warm. She could gauge enough from his silent emotion and his posture he still wasn’t comfortable with her leaving the room yet, but at least he remembered to feed her and he had tried to make her as warm as he could. It seemed aliens were more adapted to the chill of space, and so most outposts like this were colder than humans were used to. It made sense to her. It wasn’t like humans were exactly traveling out this far. They weren’t adapted to this kind of life. She was the first, and no one even knew it. 

It made her feel slightly melancholy. She did miss Earth. There were things she had hated, but it was still her home. She hadn’t left much behind, but her exit had been unexpected and the reality of her situation hadn’t hit her during her blissful time on the ship. But it wasn’t like she could convince him to go back. From what she could garner, his kind visited Earth fairly consistently and so going back would be a risk. It would be easier to track them. This was her life now. 

He was her life now. 

*******

“What are you doing?” Chloe asks him one day. She figures they’ve been there about a week now, as far as days go on the planet. 

“Fix ship.” He says, messing with something electronic on the floor of their room. Chloe couldn’t even begin to tell you what it was or what it did. “Damaged.” 

“From the other ship?” 

All she gets is a grunt in reply. 

“Was...was it your kind...that attacked?” 

He shakes his head, locks swaying back and forth. “No.” 

“Oh.” Chloe looks down at her hands. “Can...can I do anything to help?” 

“No.” 

Chloe bites her lip, pulling her knees to her chest. She can’t help but start to feel bored. She had absolutely nothing to do. She was stuck in their room all day, every day. The only excitement she had was his coming and going and their mealtimes. She needed something to do. Some entertainment. Anything. 

That’s why she decides to leave the room one day when he’s out. She knows she shouldn’t, she knows she’s entirely alien to everyone that could possibly be in the outpost. She knows it’s dangerous, but she’s tired of being cooped up and bored. So, she leaves the room when he’s out fixing the ship. 

She slowly makes her way down the steps, entering the lobby of sorts. There are creatures her mind couldn’t fathom sitting around. It was more like a bar than a lobby, really. She’s utterly fascinated by the completely different world, taking in everything she can. 

She’s drawn to where groups of creatures are sitting around tables, playing what looks like Craps, but she can’t discern anything else. She leans against the side of the table, watching them curiously. None of them give her more than a glance, Chloe trying to work out the rules and point of the game on next to nothing as far as information goes. 

After a couple of rounds, the creature next to her sets the dice in front of her, giving her a look. She doesn't need to speak the language to understand what that look means. She’s reaching for the dice before she can really think it through, but she’s stopped when a clawed hand wraps around the back of her shirt, yanking her away from the table. Her feet slide on the floor as she’s dragged towards the stairs, Tusk’s nails cutting into the skin on the back of her neck. 

He’s angry. She can hear the angry trills and growls from his chest as they move away from the lounge area and back towards their room. Her feet leave the floor as she’s quite literally tossed into the room, hitting the metal floor hard. She coughs, the wind knocked from her lungs at the impact. It jars her, but not quite as much as the seething Yautja across the room. 

Chloe jumps as his helmet hits the floor with a loud thud. She’s shaking, she realizes as she props herself up on her hands, staring at the angry alien. His eyes are filled with rage, glaring yellow slits at her. His mandibles are flared wide, fists clenched. 

“ _ Ooman stay.”  _ He growls out, pacing back and forth. 

“I was bored.” Chloe tries to defend herself. “I have nothing to do.” 

_ “Dangerous. Ooman not know.”  _

“You won’t tell me anything! How am I supposed to know when you won’t tell me anything?” Her voice is rising, pushing herself up to her knees. Her side is sore where she hit the floor. She knew he was strong, but she hadn’t ever pictured the strength being used against her. She had herself convinced he wouldn’t hurt her. But he was still an alien. Had she made a mistake in thinking that of him?

_ “Ooman stay safe. Ooman do as told.” _

“You’re not the boss of me!” Chloe says, feeling childish but she’s so angry and tired she can’t help but fight back. “I didn’t ask you to take me. I didn’t ask to be with you. I didn’t ask you to leave everything behind for me. I didn’t ask you to-” 

A loud roar shocks her into silence. It’s louder than she’s ever heard from him, her ears ringing at the sound. She can’t help but fall back at his roar, backing up in fear. The sound is primal, dangerous, awakening some prey instinct in her that has her making herself as small as she can in the far corner of the room. 

He’s standing there, eyes wide in anger, mandibles splayed. Chloe hadn’t felt this afraid of the one she’d met on Earth. She hadn’t ever felt this afraid before. 

He stops roaring, glaring at her for a moment before bending to pick up his helmet, leaving the room with a slam of the door. Chloe curls up tighter in the corner of the room, burying her face in her arms. 

**********

Chloe sleeps alone on the alien planet that night. She hadn’t seen Tusk since their argument and part of her is afraid he had left her. Abandoned her on this planet in his anger. She had just been bored. She hadn’t known anything. She didn’t know anything about the galaxy or other planets or the life on them. A few weeks ago she hadn’t even known life existed outside of Earth. Of course, there had been the “sightings” and the people who were convinced, but she had always been skeptical. Skeptical until proven real. That was her mantra. 

But aliens were real. She was on some distant planet Earth probably didn’t even know about yet, crying over a fight with an alien species Earth also didn't know about. It was all very real, and here she was, crying after a childish argument with a species that could probably tear her in half with his bare hands. Who was she to think she could make decisions like that. Act stupidly in a place she was totally ignorant of? She doesn’t know what she’ll do if Tusk doesn’t come back. If he really did abandon her here. She really doesn’t know. 

*********

Tusk can’t sleep. 

He’s staring up at the three moons in the sky from the pilot seat of his ship. He had been so afraid...so worried when he’d spotted her in the lounge at the table. He had told her to stay in the room. He had told her it wasn’t safe and she had acted like a pup and defied him. 

But her face when he had roared. The...fear in her eyes. 

He feels a sick twisting in his stomach as he replays the moment in his memory over and over. It was a side of him he hoped she would never have to see. A side he never wanted to direct towards her. She was fragile, small. His little  _ ooman  _ and he had roared at her like...like an animal. He hadn’t meant it. He was blinded by his anger. He had lost his temper like a fiery Young Blood. He wouldn’t ever hurt her. Not his little  _ Yeyinde.  _

And now here he was, sulking in his ship while she was alone. 

He gets up, heading back into the outpost and up to their room. It’s dark inside but he can see her, curled up in the bed. She’s asleep, her breathing soft and even. He sets his helmet quietly on the table, getting rid of most of his armor as well before climbing into the bed next to her. She doesn’t wake, but she does shift closer to him. He runs a hand down her arm, feeling the softness of her skin, how delicate it is. He can smell the dried blood on her neck from where his claws had cut into her when he’d grabbed her. He feels the twisting in his gut again, moving his head to lick at the wounds. 

He purrs quietly, tongue tasting the metallic blood. She stirs slightly, letting out a quiet groan. 

“Tusk?” Her voice is thick with sleep, hand rubbing at her eyes. 

He lets out a louder purr, nipping softly at her shoulder. She rolls back over, settling into sleep again, Tusk wrapping himself around her tightly, holding onto her determined not to let go. 

**********

Chloe wakes up warm and comfortable. Her head is moving slightly, up and down in a smooth pattern. She would have been convinced she was on a boat if the past day’s events weren’t flashing through her head. 

She moves slightly, lifting her head so she can look up at him. His eyes are closed, face relaxed as he sleeps. Chloe wants to move away from him but she’s stuck to his side by the arm around her waist. Her leg is thrown over his, body pressed tight against his side. She rests her chin on his chest, fingers tracing the mottled pattern of his skin. She doesn't remember him coming back, doesn’t even remember him joining her in bed. 

She can’t help but remember the day before. The anger in his eyes, the roar. She’ll always remember that roar. More so that it was directed at her. But staring at him now while he’s sleeping, it’s hard to picture him as that fearsome predator she had seen yesterday. He’s still fearsome, but there’s a softness about him in his sleep. This is the Tusk she knew. 

She looks back up at his eyes, finding them open and staring at her. She had been so lost in thought she hadn’t realized he had woken up. Hadn’t felt the change in his breathing. He stares at her with his yellow eyes, all signs of anger and malice gone. Her wandering hand is almost at his jaw now, her fingers wrapping around one of his locks. He lets out a trill and suddenly she finds herself laying on top of him. 

“You scared me.” She says quietly, running her fingers over his lock, feeling the texture of it. “I thought...maybe...” 

A purr rumbles through his body and into hers, vibrating every inch of her. His hand is splayed on her back, the other tracing the skin on the back of her thigh. “No hurt  _ Yeyinde. _ ” 

Chloe lowers her gaze for a moment before looking back up at him. His hand has drifted down her back, splayed out on her lower back now. She can feel his heart thumping in his chest, an unusual rhythm to what she’s used to, but it’s become comforting to her now. She wraps her hand around his lock, tugging on it lightly. His body jerks under hers, hips shifting slightly. She gets a mischievous glint in her eye, tangling a hand in his locks before tugging hard. 

He lets out a roar, but this one is different than the one he’d made yesterday. She’s familiar with this roar, having heard it before. She tugs again and he’s sitting up, her body dropping the few inches into his lap. Her shirt is history, claws leaving light lines on her skin as he rids her of the fabric, hands sliding up her sides. His nails brush against her nipples, making her shiver. He does it again, her body starting to flush in response. 

He leans down close to her but her hand in his locks stops him. He stares at her with a question in his eyes.

“No.” She says, tugging on his locks again, his breath fanning over her face in a huff at the motion. 

She stands up on the bed, standing over him, and for a moment he wonders if she’s changed her mind, or it wasn’t what she wanted in the first place. But the moment her knee hits his chest, attempting to shove him back onto the bed he understands. Her hand yanks his head back as he grabs her leg, his other hand pushing against her back. She tugs his locks again as he flips her, easily overpowering her in this fight as she winds up on her stomach on the bed. 

He’s faster than she is, somehow having removed his loincloth in the time between when she’d hit him and when she’d been flipped. His hand presses between her shoulders, her head turning so she can still breathe. Her pants are yanked down, hips being lifted and rested on something soft. She goes limp as he positions her, taking a moment to make sure she’s comfortable before his hand is between her legs. 

She’s already wet, slick and warm against his fingers. A breathy moan leaves her lips as he brushes over her clit, hips jerking slightly to chase his fingers. He purrs deeply, the head of his length replacing his fingers, running it along her slit. Her blatant displays of aggression towards him, along with her hand in his locks, had pushed him over the edge, his length straining against his loincloth painfully until he had released it. He was well versed in doing this quickly, having to tame several females who had fought him for dominance in bed. But she wasn’t a Yautja female. She had given over quickly, and he had made sure to be gentle with her. She had known she wouldn’t win against him, her actions were solely to rile him up. 

He’s not as gentle this time, offering her no preparation as he begins to press himself inside her. A low whine leaves her lips at the stretch, her body having forgotten already what it was like. He seemed bigger than before, her body stretching, trying to fit him in. 

She’s glad the pillows are holding her hips up, her legs already shaking by the time he’s seated as far as he can go. His own breathing is labored, mandibles flared at the sensation of her tight, wet heat. He begins to move his hips, fighting the resistance of her body as he pumps himself in and out of her. She’s slowly relaxing, hands gripping the blankets on the bed, the most endearing sounds leaving her lips.

He snaps his hips into hers, her body jerking in response. Her eyes roll closed, a high pitched moan leaving her lips. His mandibles click together in a laugh, repeating the action. She tightens around him even more, a deep growl leaving him in response. He picks up speed quickly, thrusting in and out of her hard. He folds his body over hers, hands resting near her head as he mates her the Yautja way. The sound is wet, along with skin slapping skin and their moans and growls. 

He leans down, shifting his hips slightly as his mandibles trace along her face, tongue tasting the sweat on her skin. She grips the blankets tighter, squeezing impossibly tight around him,  _ ooman  _ words spilling from her lips before she goes silent for a moment. A long, keening whine leaves her then, eyelashes fluttering. She’s squeezing him, fluttering around him. He growls, hands gripping her hips as he picks up speed even more, thrusting harder and harder into her. 

His hips still, head rearing back as he lets out a roar, length pulsing as he releases inside of her. Pleasure tingles through him, traveling along his spine into his stomach and through his length. His little  _ ooman  _ is whimpering at the sensation, legs trembling still from her own release. 

He pulls out of her, sitting back and watching as their mixed fluids drip from inside of her. He leans down close to her, letting his tongue run the length of her slit. Her hips jerk in response, her back arching slightly. She’s tangy on his tongue, mixed with his musky flavor. He finds he likes the taste, pressing back in for more. 

**********

Chloe can barely leave the bed for a week. She had complained about being bored and having nothing to do, but she hadn’t quite had this in mind when she had said that. Tusk had become relentless, every moment he wasn’t fixing the ship, feeding her, or sleeping he was between her legs. He let her take the lead sometimes, but others he was ruthlessly fucking into her, leaving her with bruises and scratches. She can’t exactly complain, though. For all of their differences, he at least knew how to be a decent lover. She’d lost count of the time she’d cum from him. 

But thankfully he seems to be slowing down, spending more and more time fixing the ship, meaning it was close to being done. Perhaps that meant they would be leaving soon. Where they were going to go, however, she hadn’t gotten an answer. Perhaps because Tusk didn’t know either. 

She’s also thankful he’s gone more because she’s started to feel sick. She was eating less, none of the foods he brought seeming to be appetizing to her anymore. She had managed to stomach most of them before, but it seemed like she had lost all taste from them. Her mind comes back to the stories she’d read about alien diseases, bacteria and microscopic lifeforms brought back from space destroying humanity. Could she have gotten some sort of space parasite suddenly? Had that been why he’d been so adamant about her staying in the room? 

Chloe rests her head on the edge of the toilet seat, or what she calls the toilet seat, wiping some of the sweat from her brow. She’d puked up breakfast again, thankfully Tusk gone from the room so he wouldn’t be worried. She felt fine otherwise, just nauseous and tired. 

She washes her hands, splashing water on her face before going back to the room. She’s barely sat on the bed when Tusk comes into the room, leaving the door open for a change. 

“Come. We leave now.” 

“Now?” Chloe asks, watching Tusk grab the few things they had accumulated during their stay. 

“Yes. We go now.” 

Before she knows it she’s back on the ship, tucked safely in Tusk’s bed as he takes off. Her stomach lurches as they leave the planet, threatening to bring up the nonexistent food left. She lays there, thinking for a moment when it suddenly hits her. Her stomach drops as the ship rocks as they leave the atmosphere, eyes wide as she calculates the numbers in her head. She didn’t know exactly, but from what she could figure out, it had to be true. 

She rises out of bed, making her way from his room towards the control deck. She doesn't get that far, however, Tusk meeting her halfway. 

_ “Yeyinde.”  _ He says, pausing mid-step. 

“Tusk, I need to talk to you. I want to know where we’re going.” 

“Somewhere safe.” He says, moving past her. 

“Tusk, please, tell me.” She turns to him, watching him go with a sigh.  _ “Tarei’hsan.”  _

He stops at her attempted pronunciation of his real name. He turns slowly to face her, shoulders tensed. She approaches him, staring up at his face through the helmet. 

“Tusk, I’m...” She bites her lip. She’s not sure if the word will translate correctly or even have a meaning to him. So instead she grabs his hand, putting it over her stomach. “Pup.” 

He stares down at his hand for a long time, her small one covering his where it’s resting over her stomach. He rapidly switches through signatures on his helmet, finding the small zygote resting in her body every time. It’s faint and barely there, but he can see it. 

**********

EPILOGUE: 40 years later

Chloe steps out of the hut as the ship lands in the clearing. The other members of their clan, cast outs and loners like them stepping out as well. They had been gone for weeks now, something Chloe had gotten used to after Naugui was born. Tusk had been adamant about raising him the Yautja way. Chloe had no problem with that, after all, Naugui took after his father in every way. An outsider would have questioned whether he was Chloe’s son, but he knew, and so did his parents. Chloe had nearly died birthing him herself, and it was something she would never forget. 

She pulls her greying hair back, tying it up from her face as Naugui and Tusk step out of the ship. Tusk had managed to keep himself connected to other Yautja clans without them knowing, secretly spying on them since he left. There had been talk recently, worrying talk. There had been word of an invasion on Earth spreading through some of the clans. Tusk and Naugui had gone to see if it was true. 

Chloe can tell by their body language when they approach her what the answer is. 

“What do we do?” Chloe asks, wrapping her arms around Naugui. 

“We can do nothing,” Tusk says, cupping her face. 

“Earth was my home once. To think it could be gone...wiped out...” She chews on her lip, Naugui pulling away from her slightly. 

“The armor.” He says, looking to Tusk. “If it can get to Earth...” 

“No.” Tusk says. “It’s too risky.” 

“They need a chance to defend themselves.  _ Oomans  _ are part of me. If I can give them a chance, I will take it.” 

Tusk lets out a breath Chloe understands the meaning of. She turns back to her son, wrapping her arms around him tightly. She knows the risk well. She’d heard first hand the whispers. Being the clan leader’s wife she knew everything he did. If Naugui did this, there was a strong chance he would not be coming back. But that was the Yautja way. It was a risk they took on every hunt. A fear they faced unflinchingly. 

“Do your best, son,” Chloe says, cupping his cheek through his helmet. 

He leans forward, resting his forehead against hers for a moment before standing up straight. Chloe watches him walk to the ship, leaning against Tusks’ side, ruminating on the fact this could be the last time she sees her son. 


End file.
